Op-Ed: Police brutality in Egypt common under President Morsi's regime

Cairo
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A report by the Nadim Center for Rehabillitation of Victims of Violence, a 20-year-old Egyptian group, lists 200 cases of police brutality in the first 100 days of President Morsi's term.

The report notes that police brutality is as common under the new president, Mohammed Morsi, as it was under the overthrown regime of Hosni Mubarak. Police brutality was one of the issues that sparked the original protests that eventually resulted in the overthrow of the Mubarak regime.

The record is grim. Since Morsi came to power on June 30, police killed 34 people in police stations, public places, or prisons There were also 88 cases of torture and 7 cases of sexual assault. According to the report, no attempt has been made so far to reform police institutions.

The director of the Nadim Center, Magda Adly, said:“It’s the same system because there is no political will to change. It’s not enough to change the heads of institutions because they were trained in a school that does not respect humanity. . . . Those practices will continue.”

Many Egyptians are becoming disillusioned by the lack of change since the Mubarak regime was overthrown. There is little economic progress, few social reforms, or even increased government accountability. The lack of progress on police brutality is particularly ironic since Morsi and members of the Muslim Brotherhood were formerly among those most subject to abuse. Blame for what is happening must be shared by the powerful army council that together with the president seems to hold the reigns of power in Egypt.

Adly said the details in the report come from published accounts, legal proceedings or testimony but said that the report was probably not at all comprehensive.

The U.S. has continued to send equipment for Egyptian security forces including anti-riot gear, crowd control equipment, and weapons. In order to ensure that Egypt remains in the U.S. sphere of influence and heeds U.S. demands, the U.S. has continued to send about $1.5 billion every year to Egypt. However, there is political resistance to this aid in the U.S. and it could very well be cut in the future.

This opinion article was written by an independent writer. The opinions and views expressed herein are those of the author and are not necessarily intended to reflect those of DigitalJournal.com